Tuesday, April 04, 2017

Shopping on the UK websites provide great value with the recent weakness of the GBP. However, there are some sites that do not accept international credit cards nor ship to destinations outside the UK.

I wanted to get a pair of Adidas NMD sneakers for my wife but there was no stock available in Singapore. I discovered that UK Footlocker still held stock of the shoe in her size. So i went about trying to find ways to buy from a UK site that did not accept Singapore credit cards, nor ship directly to Singapore.

This is where i chanced upon the Borderlinx concierge service. In essence, it provides a 'personal shopper' service for a 5% fee (off the total value of goods). In addition, Borderlinx provides shipping service back to Singapore.

So if you need to buy something from the UK in a similar fashion, you have the option to use the Borderlinx Concierge service.

Lets talk about how we can proceed with the orders before i give you a summary of my personal experience.

Create a Concierge Order

Make the payment

Payment has to be made before the product will be purchased by Borderlinx. Typically you will use a Credit Card. Do note that you will incurr the usual cross-border and currency rate (GBP vs SGD) on your credit card.

In addition, there is a 'contingency' charge. This fee is 'blocked' on your credit card just in case there is a slight price difference from the input price of the product. As its name suggest, you will not be charged unless there is a difference (increase in price).

Payment for shipping to Singapore

When the product is purchased by Borderlinx, you will see an update on your concierge order status that says "Status:Order placed and accepted by merchant". Once this step is completed, the merchant will ship your order to the Borderlinx warehouse.

When your purchases reach Borderlinx, you will then need to make a final payment, for shipping to Singapore. The cost of shipping will depend on the weight of your purchase. For my case, it is as shown below (3.78kg):

As you can see, i was charged GBP $36.16 for a shipped weight of 3.78 kg.

Once the shipping costs are paid, Borderlinx will proceed to ship the purchase to Singapore, via DHL - to your desired home address.

You can track the shipment history in your concierge menu -> "My Account" -> "Shipment History".

Summary

I paid a total of GBP 139.99 + GBP 36.16 (Shipping). This translates to about S$315 at the currency rate i paid on my credit card. These shoes retail for about S$299 in Adidas Singapore, assuming you are willing to brave the long queues at the retail store and lucky enough to get one in your size.

The total time taken from entry of the concierge order to purchase of the shoes from UK Footlocker is 3 business days. Shipping via DHL by Borderlinx was fast and it took about 2-3 days before it was delivered to my doorstep in Singapore. Package was well packed and arrived in immaculate condition.

My overall experience with Borderlinx was pleasant but i was slightly disappointed at the high costs of shipping, which translate to about GBP 4.5 per 500g. Thankfully the favorable exchange rates helped to reduce my total costs. Most importantly, my wife loved the pair of shoes! :)